The Kwara State government has secured the approval of the Nursing & Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) to commence the training of graduate intern nurses in Kwara State for the first time in the history of the State.
The Executive Secretary of the Kwara State Hospitals Management Board, Dr Abdulraheem Malik, disclosed this today during the Board’s management meeting where he mentioned that Sobi Specialist Hospital, Ilorin and General Hospital, Offa, will both be the pioneer hospitals for the internship training.
According to Dr. Malik, “this is yet another great step in the right direction by the administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq towards laying a solid academic foundation that will last a lifetime in our health sector, closing manpower gaps, and sustaining the improvements we have achieved over the years in our healthcare service delivery.” Adding that, it further confirmed that the health of Kwara residents is one of the cardinal goals of the present administration.
“This trust reposed on us by the regulatory body will not be taken for granted and all preconditions that got us here today will be sustained. If you recall we recently secured a similar approval from the Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) to start training graduate pharmacist interns,” Dr. Malik affirmed.
The Executive Secretary further urged all the stakeholders in the health sector to put all hands on deck at ensuring that healthcare services are professionally delivered at all times to Kwarans.
“Kwara State has now joined the league of states in the country who train intern pharmacists and nurses. The management of the Hospital Management Board is actively working on getting accreditation to add Medical Laboratory Scientists to the State’s list of internship training”, he disclosed further.
In her remarks, the Director of Nursing Services (DNS), Mrs. Oyewole Risikat, urged the prospective graduate nurses to make good use of the opportunity as many resources have been committed to healthcare training programmes in Kwara State to enable them compete favourably well with their counterparts all over the world.
Also speaking, the Director of Medical Services and Training, Dr. Femi Joseph commended the Kwara State government and the doggedness of the Executive Secretary, Dr Abdulraheem Malik for the exemplary leadership he has brought to bear in the Agency.